Unity for Children
“Is this the best we could do for a child?”
Katrina, the visionary and founder of Unity for Children, reflects on numerous nights spent pondering the extent to which a child's voice will be heard through her efforts.Through countless nights of reflection, she arrived at a poignant realization – the individuals involved, policies, and programs designed to advocate for children's rights and well-being often fall short. This ongoing struggle isn't unique to her; it resonates with the challenges faced by many including those that provide legal, social, and health services to children.
Although the idea of becoming a lawyer briefly crossed her mind, a thorough review of her options did not convince for a sustainable and efficient path to enhance current systems and policies for the optimal support of children. This realization gave birth to Unity for Children.
Unity for Children is not a cry for battle, but a call to come together. A call to deliver a solution. When children are involved, they are not just a priority. They are the priority. Our priority.
Our Story
“In the past 8 years of my professional career, I have been entrusted with the critical task of collaborating with resources to assess, develop, and implement safeguards to eliminate or minimize risks for organizations - a practice upheld by professionals across industries. If we can effectively protect organizations and professions, why can't we extend the same level of protection to the most vulnerable members of our society? Neglecting our duty to proactively safeguard children comes with grave, often irreversible consequences for all involved. Think about the lives of over *2.7 million children in the state of Illinois who can benefit from this much needed change.”
(*Source of 2023 children population: https://www.census.gov)
What is Unity for Children project?
The Unity for Children project is an all-volunteer community-driven initiative, not a non-profit organization, across different districts of Illinois, majority of which are based in the northwest suburbs of Chicago.
We are concerned community members with first-hand experience or exposure to the lack of proactive protection for children from the negative experience caused by substance abuse, domestic violence, and neglect. We also embrace both mothers and fathers who genuinely strive to put their children first. We aim to combine first hand experience from family units with feedback from organizations and experts to help propose solutions and advocate for a 2025 legislative bill informed by the voices of those most affected by these challenges.
Unity for Children is committed to driving change in programs or policies that affect children, developing stronger sustainable systems, and empowering people of power to make well-informed decisions.
Our Commitment
Driving Policy Reform
Our team of changemakers uses collaborative engagement to blend the knowledge and training of our partners with the first-hand experience of families, to rewrite policies that puts children first.
Sustainable Systems
Develop and strengthen credible support networks that serve all children by helping encourage comprehensive local systems with community leaders and families. Our collaborative efforts will create access to reliable resources for families with children in need.
Empowered Decisions
Empowered decisions come from the collective strength and knowledge of families, communities, and people of power. Without this, sustainable and effective systemic change will not be possible. In collaboration with our partners, we seek to emphasize the importance of continued education and training of our judicial power, while keeping children as a priority.
Get Involved!
Fill out the involvement form and submit your application to take action with our team of changemakers and partners: